Berkshire (UK Parliament Constituency)
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Berkshire was a
parliamentary constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...
in
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, represented in the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
of the
Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advised ...
until 1707, then of the
Parliament of Great Britain The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in May 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. The Acts ratified the treaty of Union which created a new unified Kingdo ...
from 1707 to 1800 and of the
Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...
from 1801 to 1885. The county returned two
knights of the shire Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistribution ...
until 1832 and three between 1832 and 1885.


Boundaries and boundary changes

This
county constituency In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons. Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called " constitue ...
consisted of the historic county of Berkshire, in south-eastern England to the west of modern
Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness, the state of being great *Greater than, in inequality (mathematics), inequality *Greater (film), ''Greater'' (film), a 2016 American film *Greater (flamingo), the oldest flamingo on record *Greater (song), "Greate ...
. Its northern boundary was the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
. See
Historic counties of England The historic counties of England are areas that were established for administration by the Normans, in many cases based on earlier kingdoms and shires created by the Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Celts and others. They are alternatively known as an ...
for a map and other details. The
Great Reform Act The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...
made some minor changes to the parliamentary boundaries of the county, transferring parts of five parishes to neighbouring counties while annexing parts of four other parishes which had previously been in
Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
. The county, up to 1885, also contained the
borough constituencies In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons. Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called "constituenc ...
of Abingdon (1 seat from 1558), New Windsor (2 seats 1302–1868, 1 seat from 1868),
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...
(2 seats from 1295) and Wallingford (2 seats 1295–1832, 1 seat from 1832). Although these boroughs elected MPs in their own right, they were not excluded from the county constituency, and owning property within the borough could confer a vote at the county election.


History

As in other
county constituencies In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons. Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called " constitue ...
the franchise between 1430 and 1832 was defined by the Forty Shilling Freeholder Act, which gave the right to vote to every man who possessed
freehold Freehold may refer to: In real estate *Freehold (law), the tenure of property in fee simple * Customary freehold, a form of feudal tenure of land in England * Parson's freehold, where a Church of England rector or vicar of holds title to benefice ...
property within the county valued at £2 or more per year for the purpose of land tax; it was not necessary for the freeholder to occupy his land, nor even in later years to be resident in the county at all. At the time of the
Great Reform Act The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...
in 1832, Berkshire had a population of about 145,000, but only 3,726 votes were cast at the election of 1818, the highest recorded vote in the county before 1832, even though each voter could cast two votes. Although local landowners could never control a county the size of Berkshire in the way they could own a pocket borough, titled magnates still exercised considerable influence over deferential county voters: in the early 19th century Lord Craven and
Lord Braybrooke Baron Braybrooke, of Braybrooke in the County of Northampton, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1788 for John Griffin, 4th Baron Howard de Walden, with remainder to his kinsman Richard Neville-Aldworth. Lord How ...
were considered the "patrons" of the Berkshire constituency and could usually persuade the voters to support their favoured candidates. The place of election for the county was the then county town of Abingdon. In 1880, according to the report in ''The Times'' (of London), the ballot boxes were taken to
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...
for the count and declaration of the result, instead of these taking place at Abingdon as had happened previously. Before the Reform Act it was normal for voters to expect the candidates for whom they voted to meet their expenses in travelling to the poll and to provide food, liquor and lodgings when they arrived, making the cost of a contested election in some counties prohibitive, but this was less of a factor in a comparatively small county like Berkshire, and contested elections were not uncommon. Nevertheless, potential candidates preferred to canvass support beforehand and usually did not insist on a vote being taken unless they were confident of winning. There were contests in Berkshire at 11 of the 29 general elections between 1701 and 1832, but in the other 18 the candidates were returned unopposed. Under the Great Reform Act of 1832, the county franchise was extended to occupiers of land worth £50 or more, as well as the forty-shilling freeholders, and Berkshire was given a third MP. Under the new rules, 5,582 electors were registered and entitled to vote at the general election of 1832. The constituency was abolished in 1885, and the county was divided into three single-member constituencies: the Northern or Abingdon Division; the Southern or Newbury Division; and the Eastern or
Wokingham Wokingham is a market town in Berkshire, England, west of London, southeast of Reading, north of Camberley and west of Bracknell. History Wokingham means 'Wocca's people's home'. Wocca was apparently a Saxon chieftain who may ...
Division. The Abingdon Division absorbed the abolished parliamentary boroughs of Abingdon and Wallingford, whilst the parliamentary boroughs of
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...
and New Windsor were retained, each with 1 MP.


Members of Parliament

* ''Constituency created'' (1265): See
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester ( – 4 August 1265), later sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from his namesake relatives, was a nobleman of French origin and a member of the English peerage, who led the ...
and
Montfort's Parliament Simon de Montfort's Parliament was an English parliament held from 20 January 1265 until mid-March of the same year, called by Simon de Montfort, a baronial rebel leader. Montfort had seized power in England following his victory over Henry III ...
for further details.
Knights of the shire Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistribution ...
are known to have been summoned to most Parliaments from 1290 (the 19th Parliament of Edward I) and to every one from 1320 (the 19th Parliament of
Edward II Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to t ...
).


Knights of the shire 1265–1660

''Some of the members elected during this period have been identified, but this list does not include Parliaments where no member has been identified. The year given is that of the first meeting of the Parliament, with the month added where there was more than one Parliament in the year. If a second year is given this is a date of dissolution. Early Parliaments usually only sat for a few days or weeks, so dissolutions in the same year as the first meeting are not recorded in this list. If a specific date of election is known this is shown in italic brackets. The Roman numerals in brackets, following some names, are used to distinguish different MPs of the same name in 'The House of Commons' 1509-1558 and 1558-1603.''


Knights of the shire 1660–1885


Elections

In multi-member elections the bloc voting system was used. Voters could cast a vote for one or two (or three in three-member elections 1832–1868) candidates, as they chose. The leading candidates with the largest number of votes were elected. In 1868 the
limited vote Limited voting (also known as partial block voting) is a voting system in which electors have fewer votes than there are positions available. The positions are awarded to the candidates who receive the most votes absolutely. In the special case ...
was introduced, which restricted an individual elector to using one or two votes, in elections to fill three seats. In
by-elections A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election use ...
, to fill a single seat, the
first past the post In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast thei ...
system applied. After 1832, when registration of voters was introduced, a turnout figure is given for contested elections. In three-member elections, when the exact number of participating voters is unknown, this is calculated by dividing the number of votes by three (to 1868) and two thereafter. To the extent that electors did not use all their votes this will be an underestimate of turnout. Where a party had more than one candidate in one or both of a pair of successive elections change is calculated for each individual candidate, otherwise change is based on the party vote. Candidates for whom no party has been identified are classified as Non Partisan. The candidate might have been associated with a party or faction in Parliament or consider himself to belong to a particular political tradition. Political parties before the 19th century were not as cohesive or organised as they later became. Contemporary commentators (even the reputed leaders of parties or factions) in the 18th century did not necessarily agree who the party supporters were. The traditional parties, which had arisen in the late 17th century, became increasingly irrelevant to politics in the 18th century (particularly after 1760), although for some contests in some constituencies party labels were still used. It was only towards the end of the century that party labels began to acquire some meaning again, although this process was by no means complete for several more generations. ''Sources'': The results are based on the History of Parliament Trust's volumes on the House of Commons in various periods for 1660–1820, Stooks Smith from 1820 until 1832 and Craig from 1832. Where Stooks Smith gives additional information this is indicated in a note. See references below for further details of these sources.


Elections in the 1660s

* ''Note (1660): Vote totals not available''


Elections in the 1670s

* ''Succession of Lovelace as 3rd
Baron Lovelace Baron Lovelace, of Hurley in the County of Berks, was a title in the Peerage of England. It was created on 31 May 1627 for Sir Richard Lovelace, who had earlier represented Berkshire, Abingdon and Windsor in Parliament. The second Baron se ...
25 November 1670'' * ''Death of Neville 7 October 1676'' * ''Death of Powle 12 July 1678'' * ''Note (1678): The vote totals are unknown but must have been close as the
Returning Officer In various parliamentary systems, a returning officer is responsible for overseeing elections in one or more constituencies. Australia In Australia a returning officer is an employee of the Australian Electoral Commission or a state electoral ...
made a double return, which had not been resolved by the House of Commons when Parliament was dissolved on 24 January 1679''


Elections in the 1680s

* ''Note (1685): Vote totals not available''


Elections in the 1690s


Elections in the 1700s


Elections in the 1710s

* ''Creation of St John as the 1st
Viscount Bolingbroke Viscount Bolingbroke is a current title in the Peerage of Great Britain created in 1712 for Henry St John. He was simultaneously made Baron St John, of Lydiard Tregoze in the County of Wilts. Since 1751, the titles are merged with the titles of ...
''


Elections in the 1720s

* ''Note (1722): Vote totals not available. Sedgwick states that the majority was over 400 and that 2,177 electors voted.'' * ''Note (1727–1768): Namier and Brook observe that there were no contested elections and that the county was represented by a succession of Tory country gentlemen. Sedgwick however identified a contested election in 1727.''


Elections in the 1730s

* ''Death of Packer 4 April 1731'' * ''Death of Stonhouse 10 October 1733'' * ''Death of Archer 30 June 1739''


Elections in the 1740s

* ''Death of Packer 21 August 1746''


Elections in the 1750s

* ''Death of Powney 8 March 1757''


Elections in the 1760s

* ''Death of Pye 2 March 1766''


Elections in the 1770s

* ''Death of Craven 14 December 1772'' * ''Death of Griffith 12 January 1776''


Elections in the 1780s


Elections in the 1790s

* ''Death of Hartley 12 August 1794'' * ''Note (1796): Party labels; poll 5 days (Source: Stooks Smith)''


Elections in the 1800s


Elections in the 1810s

* ''Note (1812): Poll 15 days; 1,992 voted. (Source: Stooks Smith). Stooks Smith and Thorn refer to the Hon. Richard Griffin as the Hon. R. Neville, a name he used before 1797 - see
Baron Braybrooke Baron Braybrooke, of Braybrooke in the County of Northampton, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1788 for John Griffin, 4th Baron Howard de Walden, with Remainder (law), remainder to his kinsman Richard Neville-Aldwo ...
for more details.'' * ''Note (1818): Poll 15 days. (Source: Stooks Smith). Stooks Smith and Thorn refer to the Hon. Richard Griffin as the Hon. R. Neville, see note (1812).''


Elections in the 1820s

* ''Note (1820): Poll 15 days; 1,258 voted. Stooks Smith refers to the Hon. Richard Griffin as the Hon. R. Neville, see note (1812). Stooks Smith commented that "this was the third election at which Mr Hallett, without any chance of success, kept the poll open for 15 days".''


Elections in the 1830s

* ''Creation of Dundas as
Baron Amesbury Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
'' * ''Poll 7 days''


Elections in the 1840s


Elections in the 1850s


Elections in the 1860s

* ''Death of Vernon''


Elections in the 1870s

* ''Resignation of Benyon''


Elections in the 1880s

* ''Constituency divided in the 1885 redistribution


See also

*
List of former United Kingdom Parliament constituencies This is a list of former parliamentary constituencies in the United Kingdom, organised by date of abolition. It includes UK parliamentary constituencies that have been abolished, including those that were later recreated, but does not include co ...
*
Unreformed House of Commons "Unreformed House of Commons" is a name given to the House of Commons of Great Britain and (after 1800 the House of Commons of the United Kingdom) before it was reformed by the Reform Act 1832, the Irish Reform Act 1832, and the Scottish Reform ...


References


Citations


Sources

* * ''British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885'', compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (The Macmillan Press 1977) *''Cobbett's Parliamentary history of England, from the Norman Conquest in 1066 to the year 1803'' (London: Thomas Hansard, 1808

* ''The House of Commons 1509-1558'', by S.T. Bindoff (Secker & Warburg 1982) * ''The House of Commons 1558-1603'', by P.W. Hasler (HMSO 1981) * ''The House of Commons 1660-1690'', by Basil Duke Henning (Secker & Warburg 1983) * ''The House of Commons 1690-1715'', by Eveline Cruickshanks, Stuart Handley and D.W. Hayton (Cambridge University Press 2002) * ''The House of Commons 1715-1754'', by Romney Sedgwick (HMSO 1970) * ''The House of Commons 1754-1790'', by Sir
Lewis Namier Sir Lewis Bernstein Namier (; 27 June 1888 – 19 August 1960) was a British historian of Polish-Jewish background. His best-known works were ''The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III'' (1929), ''England in the Age of the Ameri ...
and John Brooke (HMSO 1964) * ''The House of Commons 1790-1820'', by R.G. Thorne (Secker & Warburg 1986) * ''The Parliaments of England'' by Henry Stooks Smith (1st edition published in three volumes 1844-50), second edition edited (in one volume) by F.W.S. Craig (Political Reference Publications 1973) * ''Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume I 1832-1885'', edited by M. Stenton (The Harvester Press 1976) *John Cannon, ''Parliamentary Representation 1832 - England and Wales'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1973) * J Holladay Philbin, ''Parliamentary Reform 1640-1832'' (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1965) * Edward Porritt and Annie G Porritt, ''The Unreformed House of Commons'' (Cambridge University Press, 1903) {{DEFAULTSORT:Berkshire (Uk Parliament Constituency) Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1265 Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom disestablished in 1885 Parliamentary constituencies in Berkshire (historic)